Trailer



Dec. 6, 1932. D. R. THOMAS 1,889,939

TRAILER Filed June 15, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 n Ni? i m: 4

D. R. THOMAS TRAILER Filed June 15, 1929 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I n! lul 2/4 W2) 1?. THO

,trailer and between its road wheels.

Patented Dec. 6, 1932 essen DAVID R. THO-MAS, or oLnvELAnn; oriro TRAILER Application filed June 15, 1929. Serial No. 371,195.

My invention is directed to the'body supporttrailers disposed be ing structure for such tween the wheels and bodies thereof.

It is among the objects of my invention to provide rolling support for a trailer which will facilitate the trailer and its rolling support being carried bodily on a flat car; which will absorb road shocks when the trailer is drawn over highways; which will reduce the strains in the supporting parts due to road shocks; which will be rugged and. durable and susceptible to economical construction.

Other objects will appear from the following descriptionof a preferred form of myinvention, reference being. had to the accompanying drawings. The essential characteristics are summarized in the claims.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic side elevation of a trailer associated with a railroad car; Fig- 2 is a diagrammatic end elevation of the trailer and railroad car Fig.

3 is an enlarged elevation partly in section of one form of the wheel supporting structure; Fig. 4; is a section taken along the broken linev l-& of Fig. 3; Fig. 5 is a side elevation and an arrangement of parts constituting another form of wheel supporting structure; ,Fig. 6 is a modified form of the construction illustrated in Fig. 3; and Fig. 7 is a section taken along the lines 7-7 of Fig. 6. v 7

To illustrate my invention, I have shown one adaptation of itsuse more or less diagrammatically in Figs. -1 and 2, wherein a trailer 1 having road wheels 2 and temporary supporting wheels 3 is shown positioned on a ramp 1 while a fiat car 5 carried on the railroad rails 6 is run under the body of the The trailer may be attached to a truck in the usual manner to be drawn over the highways but when it is desired to carry the trailer over railways,it is run onto the ramp, as illustrated, and thereafter the fiat car 5 is-run under the trailer and when both-the flat car and the trailer are moved to the left, as indi illustrate one struts 1O are'pivotally connected with the w body of the trailer as at 11 by such meansnfl" cated in Fig. 1, the trailer is lowered onto 7 the fiat car with its wheels clearing the railway road bed and is thus carried over the railway. Y 1

Referring particularly to Fig. 2,;it will be observed that the usual solid axlejwhichv might extend directly between the road wheels 2 cannot beused in this construction and that in lieu of such axle, there must be provided wheel supporting means which will clear and avoid the body and truck of the railroad car. To this end, I provide struts 10 which are connectedto'the bottom of the trailer as at 11 and whichcarry means in thelower end for supporting the axle of the road wheels. v v

Referring particularly to Figs. 3 and a. I form of my invention wherein asa pin 12 extending through spaced bearings18.- 'The lower end of the strut 10 carries asliding journal box-1 l in which is received the journal or stub axle 15 of the road wheels. 'Resilient means such assprings 16'-" permit vertical displacement between the journal and the strut. As will appear from I Fig. 3, when the trailer .15 being drawn over the hlghway, unevenness of the h1ghway will causenot only vertical forces or shocks to be directed fromthe ax'leto the strut but such shocks will have a horizontal component which I propose to absorb by-resilientmeans such as springs 17, which are borne between brackets 18 and the mid portion of the strut 1'0. Thus'as the vehicle moves along the highway, vertical components of shocks are taken through the springs 16 and horizontal components of shocks are taken through the a spring 17 while the strut oscillates within a limited range about the axis of the pin 12.

,W ere the strut 10 and brackets 18' strong enough to take the horizontal component of the shocks directly, their mass and strength would have to be usually great whereas by p and permitting I interposing resilient means the strut to oscillate slightly, the stress of the shock is largely absorbed in the springs or other cushioningmeans and the parts of the theend of the structure may be correspondingly reduced in mass and strength.

Referring to Fig. 6,1 show a modified form of this construction wherein the, strut 10A is pivoted, as at 20, in the pedestal 21 and carries the wheel axle in a manner similar to that-described -above, but not' shown'in Fig. 6. The upper-end of thestmit isengaged between resilient cushions 22 which .mayhe of such material as vulcanizedlnbbelzso that.

a limited oscillation of the strut is permitted about its pivotal support 20. The result of this construction is similar to that above in that the wheel is permitted to move horizontally with relation to the body of the trailer-as well as vertically under the influence of road shocks. In Fig. 7, 1 show :the pivotal support for the strut 10A comprising a trunnion part 23 carried by bearings of the pedestal 21 which, 'itwil'liibe observed, I

"is-considerably 'ofiset from the wheels. To

=ta*ke care of the "laterzulthrust on ithe pedesta'l bearings, I secure a block'24 :to the bottom of the trailer against'which the upper end of strut 10A is latera'l'lyaand slidably supported, as ati25. j

Referring toFi-g.5,1zshow a further modi fication of my invention wherein the resiliently supported journal 'box :or like construction is-elim inatediand:wherein the one spring or its equivalent takes both the vertical and horizontal component of the :road shocks while permittingt'he wheel'tomovevboth aver- .tically and horizontally relative to the body o f'the trailer. In this arrangement, the-strut 10B is inclined at the vertical :and :is pi'votally secured to the body of the *trailer as at 30 and forms ati ts lower end a :bearing 31 inwhich is 'received'the stub ax'lie-.or journal '32-of=the road wheel. Preferab'lyabout m'idway between theends of thestrut is a spring 33 which is compressed -between rthe strut and bracket 34 by the wheel load; Azn :auxiliary and rebound-spring '35 is disposed *between the opposite side of the strut :and a bracket 36. Preferably a small :b'l-ock 37-bit While the foregoing constitutes a descrip- I :tion ,of my invention in certain modified forms. Ido not care to be limited to any specific showing, other than by the claims appended hereto.

I claim l. A vehicle having a bodyand a wheel,

the combination of an axle carried by the wheel, a depending strut resiliently engaging said axle and pivotally connected to said body and resilient means engaging said strut 1for;1 limiting its movement relative to said 2. A vehicle having a body and a wheel, the combination of an axle carried by the wheel, a journal -box for said axle, a'dependingstrut slidably engaging said journal box andipivotally connected to said body and resillent means engaging said strut for limiting its movement relative to said body.

3. Vehicle body supporting means comprisin-gra wheehanaxle, a strut pivotally con nected to said body at its upper end and extending downwardly atan angle to the vertical and connectcd tosaid wheelan'd axle at its "lower end and resilient means extending -at' r1ght angles to the strut and engaging said strut in 'its mid portion for carrying at least part of the wheel load and limiting its pivotal movement relative to said body.

4. Vehiclebodysupportingmeanscomprising-a whee-lhaving a stub axle, astrut having a fbearing inits 'l'owerend andengagin g said axle and having-its upper end *pivota'lly connected to the body of the vehicle, said strut ibeing inclined at-an'angle to the vertical with its lo'werend rearwardly .aof forward end, a spring engaging the rearward and upper side'of the strut in its *m'idportion for ear-ryingat least part of the wheel load,

- 5. Vehicle body supporti-nganeans comprising awheel, an axle, a depending strut interposed between the body of the vehicle and said wheel and axle,said-strut be i-nginclined to the vertical with its "lower end rearward of its *upperend, a'pair of brac'kets disposed respectively fore and aft tolthe point o f-coniiiection between the upper end of the strut andthebody of .the vehicle, a relativelyheavy spring engaged be-tween said strut and the rearward of said brackets and a relatively light spring engaged between said strutand the forward of saidbracleets'. r

6. Veh-iclebody supporting means comprisfingra wheel having a stub a'xle, a-strut1iaving abearing inits lower endandengaging said axle and havingitsnpper end pivotal'ly con nected to the body of the vehicle, said strut being inclinedat an angle .to the vertical with its lowerendrcarwardly of its forward end, a spring engaging the rearward and upper side of the strut'in its'mit portion for carrying at least part ofthe wheel'load, 'and'means opposing said spring to limit the-movement of said strut.

7. Vehicle body supporting-means comprising-a 'wheel,.-an axle, a dependingstrut interposed between the" body of the vehicle and said wheel and axle, said strutbeing inclined to the vertical with its lower end rearward of its upper end, apair of brackets disposed respectively fore and aft to the point of connection 'between the upper'endof the strut rearward of said brackets, a relatively light spring engaged between said strut and the forward of said brackets, and means for limiting the extension of said relatively heavy springother than the wheel load;

8. In a trailer adapted to be hauled over a highway and positioned on a ramp while a fiat car carried on railroad rails is run under the body thereof and between its road wheels, the zone between the road wheels and the body and the ground being unobstructed, the combination of a unitary mounting for each of the road wheels which comprises an axle, an upright strut engaging the axle and being pivotally mounted gaging said strut whereby oscillation of said strut about its pivotal connection with the body is resiliently resisted. r

9. In a transportation system, a. trailer adapted to be hauled over a highway and loaded on a railroad car, said trailer having at least two road wheels mounted aft of the body, wheel supporting means which will clear and avoid the body and truck of the railroad car, said wheel supporting means comprising struts depending fromtheaft part of the vehicle and on opposed sides thereof and being pivotally connected to the body of the vehicle, an axle carried by each of the wheels, said struts supporting said axles, and a resilient means engaging said struts and limiting their movement relative to the body. 7

10. In a transportation system which includesa trailer adapted to be coupled to another vehicle to be hauled over a highway and to be loaded on a flat car, said trailer having at least two road wheels mounted aft of the body and on opposed sides thereof, wheel supporting means which will avoid and clear the body and truck of the railroad car, said means comprising a strut mounted on each side of said vehicle and being pivotally connected to the body, an axle associated with each of said wheels, each of said struts being journaled to said engaging said-strut between the body of the vehicle and the axle and acting generally normal to said strut, and absorbing from said 1 member at least the horizontal components of road shocks received by said wheels.

In testimony wherof I hereunto afiix my signature this fourteenth day of June, 1929.

DAVID R. THOMAS.

with relation to the body, resilient means carried by the body and en- 7 axles, and resilient means 

